Education/training
Simulation games: Play to win a jobAs an employer, you know the right people are crucial to your company’s success. If only you could see how candidates perform on the job before hiring them. Sound too good to be true? Thanks to simulation software, that’s exactly what more and more employers are doing. |
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 [ 2006-11-15 ] |
A screen capture from the ExperienceChange simulation.
The Real Estate Simulator, developed by Toronto-based AlignMark (formerly Upward Motion), for example, recreates the challenges real estate agents typically face. The person being assessed interacts with virtual clients interested in buying or selling a house.
The job seeker must build rapport, negotiate price and handle personality clashes. Using the same scenario for each candidate puts everyone on a level playing field. By comparing soft skills like listening and negotiating, the tool identifies a candidate’s strengths and weaknesses.
The technology isn’t new. Computerized flight simulation technology for pilots, for example, has been around for many years. But increasingly, it’s helping companies hire, train or manage more effectively.
“Turnover goes down and (a new employee’s) speed to full productivity goes up,” says Dr. Cabot Jaffee, industrial and organizational psychologist with AlignMark. “The amount of time to train and develop is less because you start with an employee who is able to perform with more skills and abilities because you’ve got a base level of competence,”
In addition to its real estate simulator, AlignMark has developed a call centre simulator for financial institutions and a sales simulator. Each depicts scenarios typical of the respective careers.
Some assessments, such as the real estate simulator, can be taken anytime, anywhere and away from supervision and allow a candidate to test drive a job. One of the dangers is that someone other than the applicant takes the test. The solution is to choose the right follow-up interview questions — the simulation isn’t designed to replace a face-to-face meeting.
There are even simulations designed for CEOs. Toronto-based ExperiencePoint recently launched DecisionAdvantage, a new series of simulation games designed to help managers and leaders make better decisions, faster.
The first exercise, the Omega Simulation, challenges participants to allocate a corporate marketing budget across multiple brands. Only through a rapid yet careful assessment of both quantitative and qualitative data can one succeed in the game. In the final debrief, participants learn what they did well and how they can improve.
DecisionAdvantage can be played in facilitator-led classroom sessions or in a learner’s office or home. It’s used primarily by organizations wanting to develop their next generation of leaders, reports ExperiencePoint co-founder James Chisholm.
“We’re seeing the need for rapid executive development. A lot of folks are looking to simulation as a way to do that,” he says. “We help people identify where they need to improve and develop a plan. We believe the best way to learn is through experience. They practice decision making in a safe environment.”
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